A newly waxed bottom or base surface of a ski or snowboard provides for easier turning of the ski or snowboard, better control, and a faster surface to ride on. When in use, the friction between the base surface of the ski or snowboard and the snow generates a thin layer of water on the base surface. Too much water results in a wet drag, and too little water results in a dry drag. A properly waxed base surface will optimize the balance between too much and not enough water on the base surface, thereby improving the performance of the ski or snowboard. Waxing a ski or snowboard also serves to repair scratches and gouges that have been formed in the base surface while in use due to contact with branches, rocks and ice.
Wax comes in various formulas, including paste, liquid, and hard wax. There are two primary types of wax: glide wax (further explained below) and grip wax. Grip wax allows a Nordic/cross-country skier to propel forward by gripping the snow when the skier puts pressure on the kick zone of the ski, further releasing the snow as the skier takes the stride and the pressure on the kick zone is decreased. Hence, grip wax is only used for Nordic skis, while glide wax can be applied to Nordic skis, alpine skis, and snowboards.
Wax is typically applied as a hot wax or a cold wax. Some users, as well as sports and ski/snowboard shops, will apply a hot wax to the base surface to create a smooth surface by filling in the scratches and gouges. A hot wax surface of glide wax is applied by first heating the appropriate wax until melted, then dripping the melted wax onto the base of a ski or snowboard. The wax is then typically ironed using a heated iron. After the base has cooled, the excess wax is scraped off. Finally, the base surface is buffed to allow for a fast surface which minimizes friction.
Applying a hot wax surface, however, requires extensive experience in waxing and appropriate equipment and space, making it difficult and impractical for the average user to do it themselves on a regular basis. Having a hot wax surface applied by a shop can be expensive and inconvenient because the skis or snowboards have to be left and picked up and are unavailable for use during that time.
The type of glide wax used to wax skis/snowboards also depends on the snow temperature, crystal structure, and humidity of the snow. For example, one type of wax will yield better performance in man-made snow, while another type of wax will perform better in cold and dry conditions. A user might have a certain type of glide wax applied as a hot wax some time prior to skiing, but find that the hot wax applied is the wrong type of wax for the ski conditions when the user arrives at the ski slope. Hence, the user might need to apply a cold wax at the ski slope to improve the base surface's performance. Regardless of the wax applied, waxed bases are easier to turn, more durable, and faster than unwaxed bases, which is why the process of applying wax to a ski or snowboard is referred to as tuning, as it improves the performance of the ski or snowboard, like tuning an instrument before use improves its performance.
There are cold wax products in the market that provide waxing solutions that can be easily applied to skis and snowboards, but which do not provide as high quality of a waxed base as traditional hot waxing. Nevertheless, these products can improve base surface performance and extend the period between applications of hot wax. For example, a user can buy a block of wax and carry it with them while skiing. When they want to apply the wax, they remove the wax from their clothing or a pouch and rub it on the base surface. To smooth the newly waxed surface, the user would then need to scrape off excess wax with something. Typically, a user would carry a separate scraper with them for this purpose. Once the excess wax was removed, the surface should be smoothed using another device, such as a piece of cork, which the user would need to carry with them as well.
Obviously, carrying one or more different types of wax, a scraper and cork is not something every user will want to do. Further, if the wax is stored on the user near their heated body, the wax may begin to melt and be absorbed by the material surrounding the wax, which is not desirable. Even without the application of heat, the wax can simply rub off on surrounding materials, thereby ruining or fouling that material. Finally, the separate pieces needed to properly wax the base surface increase the likelihood that the user will forget one, such as the scraper or the smoother, or might lose one or more while skiing or digging around in their pockets looking for something else.
To partly address this problem, SWIX SPORT developed a waxing kit that includes F4 fluoro wax and a cork. The kit consists of a hexagon plastic container that contains and holds the wax, to keep it from ruining any surrounding material, with a thin circular layer of cork adhered to the bottom of the container for spreading and polishing the applied wax. Some problems with the SWIX SPORT product are that it does not include a scraper and the container is too large to make the product portable. It can be used before using the skis or snowboard, but the bulky container is not convenient for carrying around. Hence, the user would be required to remove the wax, carry a separate scraper, and not have access to the wax when using the product in-between ski runs or at a ski lodge.
Cork or cork-like materials are used for smoothing the wax on the base surface of the ski or snowboard. Cork is used in place of a wax iron to wax a surface because rubbing the cork against the base surface, after wax has been separately applied, generates sufficient heat to help melt the wax into the base surface. Natural cork is preferably used for hydrocarbon-based wax and can generate more heat than synthetic cork. Synthetic cork is preferably used for fluorocarbon-based waxes or additives. Waxing corks can be large in size, or attached to a wood block, in order for the cork to be easily handled when polishing. However, this tends to make corks bulky. Felt pads can also be used as a buffer.
Other portable wax containers include an applicator, allowing for the wax to be easily applied to the base surface of the ski or snowboard without a waxing iron. Wax kits consisting of a small portable pack containing wax, a cork or polishing cloth, and sometimes a base cleaner, but not a scraper, are also popular. While the packs are portable, they tend to be bulky and cannot be easily carried inside a pocket. These packs simply provide users with the convenience of not having to buy each item separately, but do not solve the problem of carrying and using them while skiing or snowboarding.
Wax scrapers tend to be made of plastic or metal, such as steel. The scrapers can range in size, from a few inches for portable scrapers, to bigger scrapers to be used on surfaces such as snowboards. The majority of scrapers tend to be flat, rectangular, and at least 15 cm in length, in order to reduce the effort on scraping the entire base of the ski or snowboard. This allows users to grip one edge of the rectangle, and use it as leverage to apply pressure using the opposite edge of the scraper. Some scrapers are also shaped in a triangular form, increasing the life span of the scraper since it allows users to use a different side of the scraper triangle in case one of the edges goes dull. However, triangular scrapers can be awkward to handle at times when scraping off excess wax on the base surface of the ski or snowboard.
Steel and plastic are the most used materials for scrapers. Steel or other metals have a longer lifespan, since they do not go dull as fast as the plastic scrapers, and they can also be sharpened. The disadvantage of metal scrapers is that the sharper edges and hardness of steel or metal scrapers can damage the base surface if too much force is applied or if used improperly. Another problem is that even if the scraper is small in size, it is an additional tool that must be carried along with wax and buffer if the user wants to apply some wax to the skis or snowboard while on the slopes.
Having a waxed base surface is important for the best ski or snowboard performance. Portable solutions have been presented, but they are not integrated and are not convenient for carrying, especially while on the slopes.